Finding Joy, One Roast at a Time
For the past two decades, expensive hobbies have been a consistent thread in my life. From photography to astronomy, and most recently, coffee roasting, these pursuits, while impacting my bank balance, have undeniably brought me a much-needed sense of joy. In a world often devoid of personal satisfaction amidst work and other demands, these hobbies have been a cherished escape. While I haven’t mastered past endeavors, nor do I expect to become a coffee roasting guru, I am committed to continuously exploring new hobbies in my quest for happiness.Coffee Roasting: More Than Just a Hobby
Coffee roasting, however, feels different. It’s a journey that has deepened the bond between my wife and me. Unlike other topics where we might go back and forth, coffee is something we can genuinely enjoy together. We’ve shared countless deep and emotional conversations over a cup, and our favorite coffee houses have become cherished gathering spots. The idea for a web blog dedicated to coffee roasting emerged from these shared experiences, even as we’re still discovering what this field holds for us.The Learning Curve: From Green Beans to Roasting Stages
The initial weeks felt like a child learning to ride a bicycle – discovering fundamental concepts like green beans, and understanding the differences between light, medium, and dark roasts. This initial excitement soon gave way to a slight anxiety, a flurry of decisions: What equipment do I need? Out of all the options, which should I choose? Where do I even buy this stuff? I plan to dedicate an upcoming blog post to thanking the individuals who came to my rescue during this phase.
Finally, as a technology leader specializing in AI/ML (cutting-edge in 2025!), I’ve intentionally incorporated various AI tools to enhance this blog. These tools have been instrumental in generating content (both images and text), reviewing my writing, sparking new ideas, and most notably, creating Roastbot, a coffee-focused chatbot. Roastbot provides an interactive interface to answer coffee roasting questions, drawing from over 200 resources I’ve used to train it.
As you explore roastcoffee.ai, you might encounter some familiar text which I’ve used as references, leveraging AI tools to structure and present the information in a way that brings out the best knowledge available.
